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Is the Tax Man Helping the Stock Market?

Apr 17, 2012 12:28 pm ET

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By Alexandra Scaggs and Steven Russolillo

It might not be a coincidence stocks are up on the same day as the US deadline to file federal income-tax returns.

“The U.S. stock market tends to rise in the week after tax day as the pressure of tax-related selling ends,” says TrimTabs Research. Over the past decade, the Russell 1000 has risen an average of 1.3% the week following tax day, the firm notes.

Stocks are getting a nice boost today, with the major indexes steadily moving higher. At last check the Dow was up 176 points and back above 13,000, while the S&P 500 rose 1.4% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Comp jumped 1.6%.

A successful Spanish bond auction is helping matters today. Spain sold more debt than it had planned, which has helped ease concerns about the country’s rising borrowing costs. Yields on 10-year Spanish government bonds are back below 6%.